5 Home Improvements That You Can Do to Make Your Home Eco-Friendly

20 Jun 2018

There are fewer prospects more enjoyable and exciting in a homeowner’s life than the idea of improving a home. However, nowadays, homeowners don’t merely make for ordinary home improvements. They want improvements to make their homes eco-friendly.

An eco-friendly home can provide a lot of advantages, not only to the environment, but also to you as a homeowner. That’s why it’s essential that you plan your home improvement correctly before you go through it, to make sure that you can do your bit for the environment.

Now, if you want to make your home environment-friendly, here’s a list of home improvement ideas to make it just like that. So take a read!

Permeable Block Paving

Eco-Friendly home improvement doesn’t all mean that you only have to work on the interior. It will do you good to put equal importance on the exterior as well.

One of the most popular environment-friendly ideas for home improvement today is permeable block paving. Permeable block paving is a technique of paving for garden patios and driveways. It has similarities with the standard outdoor paving, except that it creates larger gaps between paving blocks for excess water to pass through the surface.

In most homes that have permeable block paving, for instance, there’s a sub-base where water can be drained away slowly, collected, and reused for your various needs. If you have a small pond in your home, you can also redirect water collected from the pavement into the pond, saving you a lot of water in the process.

Permeable block paving will also make your home safe when there are heavy rains to prevent flooding in your home. Although this technique can be more costly than non-permeable paving, it’s still an excellent environment-friendly investment altogether.

Window Renovation

One of the ideal environment-friendly ideas for home improvement nowadays is window renovation. It’s because your windows can play a huge role in how sunlight and air pass through your house. And for this purpose, it’s time that you install double-glazed windows in your home.

Windows with double glazing can provide some significant advantages to you as a homeowner. It’s an energy-efficient choice to include on your home renovation project, as it prevents excess heat passing through your home due to its airtight features.

That means that your HVAC system will not have to use more energy in the summer, and the cold air won’t enter during the winter season. Double glazing is also a perfect way to muffle outside noises from coming into your home.

Switching to LEDs

When the natural light goes out, or the sun has set, you need to switch on the artificial light in your home for your needs. Artificial lights may not sound eco-friendly, but they become eco-friendly if you prefer LEDs over standard incandescent light bulbs to provide light to your home. It’s the modern times after all!

LEDs require less wattage than incandescent bulbs, meaning they’re more energy-efficient and eco-friendly. Aside from the environment-friendly aspect, LEDs are also long-lasting, which means that you’ll get more money-savings in the long run.

Thus, if you’re planning to have a revamp of your home, you need to make sure that you include the replacements of your old light bulbs with LEDs on the list. You can hire electricians for the safe installation of LEDs in your home.

Installing Solar Panels

When talking about eco-friendly home improvement ideas, it’s a sort of an environmental sin if solar panels are left out of the conversation.

Installing solar panels can be costly at first, but they’re an excellent investment in the long run. Not only can it help improve the environment by reducing your carbon footprint, but it can also save you money on your electricity bills.

Now, if you’re hell-bent on saving the planet from climate change, you should consider installing solar panels on your home!

Loft Conversion

Typically, the heat that accumulates in the home can be blamed on the type of roof you have. If this is the case, rising temperature inside your home can cause your HVAC unit to exert more energy than usual. This generates a negative impact on the environment, and an expensive cost for your cooling and heating expenses.

Loft conversion and insulation is one effective way to minimize heat loss. Thus, you should make sure that you include loft conversion and insulation in your next home improvement project.

Go Green: Go Eco-Friendly!

Home improvements are an essential way to make your home aesthetically appealing and eco-friendly. If you make your home environment-friendly, you not only help save the environment, but you can also save a lot of money. If you want to reap its benefits, you can follow some of the home improvement ideas above for that purpose.

Leslie Wyman

Leslie Wyman is a home improvement blogger and environmental advocate. She writes blog articles that focus on home renovation ideas that can minimize carbon footprints. Leslie also loves to travel with her friends overseas.